MarksLife

Monday, October 02, 2006

Why we wear clothes

It’s difficult if not impossible to truly understand the relationship between the human race and the planet earth. Many of my observations have led me to believe that we are foreign to this planet. This believe came about because of my studying the interactions we have with our world. How is it that we are the only creatures on this planet that is not in harmony with the environment it occupies? From the time of recorded history to the present day it seems humans have been at odds with the planet. Our obvious need to survive has led us to drain it of oil and burn it to the point where the planet is covered in a cloud of waste gas. It’s no doubt we need to use energy to survive as a race. My bewilderment is how our native format is so ill suited for the conditions the planet confronts us with. So without any answers to the question; do we belong on this planet, earth. I though I would explore examples through out history that support the need for this question. Much of what is learned in history books makes us believe it’s natural for any civilized culture to control the surroundings about them. But when you look to nature, it’s only true for man. All the other creatures on earth are symbiotic with the planet and don’t attempt to control it in a destructive manner.

The one place to start is the bible, because it begins with the concept that we started out in the Garden of Eden, a place designed for humans to exist in what I call, “our native form”. As the story is told, because of an evil deed; a deed in direct disregard to our maker’s wishes, we were thrown out of an environment designed for humans into the world we now known as earth. So the bible supports my theory that we are not intended for the planet and all its harshness. The bible doesn’t answer the question as to what exactly was Eden or where Eden is. The bible is quick to end the story of Eden and start the toils of mankind on earth. Human evolution is another concept that I have trouble with. If we look to nature it appears all of the creatures on this planet evolved so as to better survive the conditions that confront them. Yet man’s evolutionary path (if such a path even exists) seems to divert from adaptation to the planets environment. There are some genetic traits we share with all the creatures of the planet, such as our survival instinct and fight or flight instinct. Yet we have no basic instinct to live in harmony or any kind of synergy with the planet. There are many other clues which has led me to believe we don’t belong on (or at least not suited for) the planet earth as it is.

How have we dealt with our fate on this fragile planet? From the second we stepped onto the ground, with every means possible mankind has attempted to destroy the earth for its own survival. One may say, “It’s natural for one to change ones environment to survive.” Yet again I have to ask, “Why aren’t we suited for the planet as it is?” The other creatures on the planet have a natural harmony with the planet. It amazes me to see how the creatures on earth; no matter how brutal the conditions may seem, fit so well into the cycle of life and the environment of the planet. We were quick to recognize that other creature’s skins were intended for the harshness of the planet and so we tour the skin off creatures and wrapped ourselves in there skin. So one of the first things we did to survive was to wrap ourselves in the skin of other animals. Then instead of modern humans seeking out natural shelters as other creatures of the planet do. We started cutting down trees and build shelters that depended on the destruction and deforestation of the planet. I’m not claiming that all the modern comforts are wrong, in fact they are necessary for our survival, they are just wrong for this planet.

The modern human race has no genetic ties to the planet. A genetic link to the planet is an inborn synergy or harmony repeated from generation to generation. This lack of connection forces us to rationalize and balance the survival of the human race against the survival of the planet. Our modern society and in particular the thinking of individuals has an almost total disregard for that balance. Today there seems to be a aloft attitude combined with a self rightist belief that we have a God given right to use and abuse the planet at will. We have turned the planet into our personal garbage dump. It’s not possible to take a walk in the woods without seeing trash on the ground. The people who throw there garbage on the ground feel no sense of belonging to the planet. There’s no feeling that they are hurting something alive, something dear to them, no connection between themselves and the earth. This attitude of not feeling connected to the planet will result in the destruction of the planet as we know it and that destruction is now taking place and may not be stoppable. We have put into motion a cycle of global warming that seems to have become self perpetrating, supported by the melting of the permafrost which is out gassing methane (a green house gas) at an alarming rate.

The question that needs to be answered is;Can a creature that is apparently not intended for a planet but has the intelligence to understand what is needed to adapt to that planet make the necessary changes to maintain a balance between the need to survive and thrive with the need for the planet’s survival?

It has now become apparent that the planets survival and our survival are completely interrelated. Our society has come to this belief by studying the effects of our actions on the environment in some cold scientific way. Not by the obvious sense of lost and sadness we should feel as we watch the effect of our actions kill a vast amount of the planets creatures and plant life. That sense of loss, should be the same loss we feel when a love one dies and should be the driving force that changes our ways, so we can make the survival of the earth and hence our survival, a priority.